Keep an eye out - 100,001 ladybugs set for release

Friday

Apr 1, 2011 at 3:00 PM

Thad AngellozStaff Writer

HOUMA — When is the last time you've seen a ladybug, let alone 100,001 of them? Well, if you attend this year's 12th annual Ladybug Ball, you can see it.Between the ladybugs, entertainment and food, the Ladybug Ball, scheduled from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 2, has it all, according to officials organizing the event. Some of the many activities planned are Indian dancers, a magician, the Audubon Zoo Bug Mobile, a ladybug attire contest, Hula Hoop contest, general store, food, drinks and more.Although she's currently in the process of handing over organizing duties to the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center of Houma, Ladybug Ball founder and chairwoman, Linda Faulk, is still playing a major role with the yearly gathering."It's amazing how many calls I get leading up to it," Faulk said of the RE-MAX-sponsored event. "Whether it's babies or people in their 90s, everyone seems to have a blast with it."From its early beginnings as a way to educate the public about the role ladybugs play as a friendly alternative to pesticides, the Ladybug Ball has grown into a must-do for locals — annually drawing 3,000 to 4,000 children, parents, grandparents and other ladybug lovers to Southdown Plantation, 1208 Museum Drive, Houma.A quick look at posts on The Courier and Daily Comet's Facebook pages show just how much the community loves the Ladybug Ball with comments ranging from "I took my daughters the last five years" to "My kids love it, great way to spend the day."Admission is free. Activities start at $1 and increase from there. A shuttle service, which runs between the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center and Southdown, offers free rides, allowing guests to park at the Civic Center, 346 Civic Center Blvd.The festival's main attraction centers on the release of 100,001 ladybugs, freed into the air by local officials stationed at 10 to 12 release posts around the plantation grounds."It's really an interesting sight to see the ladybugs released," said Big Fun on the Bayou Editor Shane Thibodaux, the father of a 6-year-old daughter. "I really feel sorry for the ladybugs," he added with a laugh. "At one minute you have all these ladybugs safe in a bag, and the next they're released to the hundreds of children scampering to fill their bug boxes with the red-and-black bugs, not noticing the bugs that fell to the ground that they're standing and trampling over."Attendees can scoop up the bugs, donated by Ganier's Southdown Gardens in Houma, and bring them home for use in family gardens and lawns. The event also includes the release of 201 butterflies donated by Terminix."People have so much fun seeing the bugs released," Faulk said. "It definitely brings smiles to everyone's faces."This year's Ladybug Ball kicks off at 9 a.m. with an opening ceremony featuring a Native American blessing. Organizers added the blessing is a tribute to Native American traditions of treasuring and nurturing nature, Faulk said.One of the most popular parts of the Ladybug Ball happens at 10 a.m., as dozens of local children compete in a ladybug look-a-like contest. "Just seeing the children all dressed in their ladybug attire is one of my favorite things," said Sue Peace of Houma, who serves as the event's master of ceremonies each year. The Ladybug Ball also includes various other nature-related and ladybug-themed activities. Children can get their fingernails painted red with black dots, buy water guns to help thirsty ladybugs, visit animals at the Audubon Nature Institute's ZooMobile, use microscopes and magnifying glasses, pose for photos with wooden cutouts of ladybugs, enjoy free ladybug cake and decorate cookies, jewelry, pet rocks, visors, sun catchers and their faces like the tiny bugs. The festival's Country Store sells clothes, crafts and other items, such as bug cages and flower halos.The store sells hundreds of the $2 bug cages each year, Faulk said.Bayou Green, a Thibodaux-based environmental group, offers another new addition to the event by giving children a chance to plant sunflowers to take home. The Ladybug Ball also includes hula hoops, bubbles, music, Disney characters, a bookmobile, balloons, a silent auction, a raffle, antique cars, fire trucks, a seat-belt safety demonstration and fingerprinting. "We try to have a lot of free activities," Faulk said. "You can come there and not spend a dime and have a great time."The South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, a Houma-based group that works to educate students about local wetlands, runs food booths at the event. The center uses proceeds from the food sales to pay for additional training for local teachers each summer.This year the Discovery Center is taking on an even bigger role in the event.Officials with the center said the Ladybug Ball serves as the center's main outreach event and fundraiser. The center is working toward funding the construction of a building to provide visitors with a deeper understanding of Louisiana's wetlands."The Ladybug Ball is a great opportunity for families to come enjoy a day of fun, knowing that they are helping to provide opportunities for children, teenagers, educators, visitors and other members of the community to learn about Louisiana's unique coastal wetlands ecosystem," said Martha Thibodeaux, president of the South Louisiana Foundation's Board of Directors. Organizers donate any portion of money left over to local charities serving children.In case of poor weather, the Ladybug Ball moves to the next day.For information, call South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center at 580-7289 or Re/Max Good Earth Realty at 851-3999.

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